Nine police officers have been released on bail of R3,000 each by the Bultfontein Magistrate’s Court in the Free State following their arrest in connection with the killing of four people, including a fellow police officer, in a 2024 incident.

The Independent Police Investigative Directorate (IPID) says the officers are facing four counts of murder.

IPID spokesperson Phaladi Shuping says the police officers, members of the Public Order Police Unit, were responding to a call about a domestic dispute in Phahameng when the situation escalated fatally.

“It is alleged that as police officers tried to apprehend them, they locked themselves inside the house and barricaded all access points into the house.”

IPID confirms that the police officers allegedly executed a tactical entry into the house during which they discharged their firearms, killing the four victims.

The case was postponed to 26 May 2026 for the Director of Public Prosecutions (DPP) to decide on the forum for the trial.